New coronavirus testing centre for key workers opens at Etihad Campus

New coronavirus testing centre for key workers opens at Etihad Campus

A new coronavirus testing centre for frontline NHS staff, care workers, other key workers and their families in Manchester and Trafford has opened at the Etihad Campus.  

The drive-through centre will allow quick and convenient testing to be carried out for key workers or members of their household who are exhibiting potential symptoms of COVID-19.  

The new facility has been established in partnership between the NHS and Manchester City Council.   The centre will have capacity of 100 tests per day to be carried out, with referrals for testing made by employers. 

Adults and children will be able to undergo testing at the centre by self-swabbing.  The diagnostic test on a swab taken from the nose or throat of an individual with suspected coronavirus symptoms provides results within a few days.

The new facility will significantly boost testing capacity for Manchester and Trafford, adding to an existing drive-through facility for health and social care workers based at Manchester Airport. 

Plans for further testing centres for the region are currently being developed.  In line with guidance from the NHS and Public Health England, new testing capacity will in the first instance be focused on frontline staff – including primary care workers, residential care and nursing home staff and adults and childrens’ social care workers – plus responding to any suspected outbreaks in high-risk community settings, such as care homes and hostels for homeless or other vulnerable people.

Manchester City Council’s Executive Member for Adult Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Bev Craig, said: “This new testing facility for health and social care workers, other key workers and their families will ensure that those who are free of COVID-19 can continue to provide vital services and save lives, while also providing data that will help us understand the spread of the virus.

“Testing removes uncertainty for those who suspect that they may be infected and will be key to enabling staff who are well to carry on with the magnificent work they are doing, while those who test positive will know that they must self-isolate and focus on recovery.” 

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